Queen Regent Cersei Lannister observes hundreds of sparrows in the plaza and gardens of the Great Sept, and bones and skulls are piled about the statue of King Baelor I Targaryen.[2] Cersei, at the behest of the High Sparrow, overturns King Maegor I Targaryen's law that banned holy men from taking up arms in return for forgiving debt. Sparrows join the reborn Poor Fellows, one of the two branches of the Faith Militant, en masse.[2][7]

Cersei: Best keep it to yourself. The hill is thick with sparrows, and we all know how sparrows abhor wickedness.Taena: I have heard they abhor soap and water too, Your Grace.Cersei: Perhaps too much prayer robs a man of his sense of smell.[2]